The effect of the print comes from overlaying blocks of 'bokashi' applied by hand during the printing process.

By using two blocks, the multi-layered effect of this print portrays the dense feel of the air under heavy clouds on an autumn day.

The 'Hashira-e' or pllar print format lends itself to the feel of a slice of the sky, from the highest clouds to nearly the horizon. Pale yellow is adeptly employed to give a sunny feel to the upper area of the sky.

An elaborate cloud print, this was carved on several blocks and printed in extensive 'bokashi'.

This is the night-time version of the print 'Akizora' (Autumn Sky). Paul Binnie has adapted it with a moon and stars, with darker shading towards the bottom.

This print is made partly in the reduction technique: the edition can never be reprinted because the block is destroyed in the process of applying layer upon layer of pigment, carving it smaller each time, such as the effect of the mica-streaks of rain.

‘Yuyake’ (Afterglow) is a new version of an older design, Akizora and Yozora, and shows the moment after sunset when the sky is still full of fading light.

This 'kacho-go' (or flower-and-bird) print is a study of orchids. In 'hosoban' format, two versions are available, in two different colour schemes. This one is inspired by the artists in the publisher Hasegawa's stable.

This is the second version of 'Asa no ran' (Orchids - Morning). The black background of this version seems both more modern and dramatic. Here, the petals have a lilac tinge to the blue shadows.

This series is a tribute to Yoshida Hiroshi, the 'master' referred to in the series title.

The first print of Binnie's series, 'Travels with the Master', it is of an impressively large size and is the biggest landscape in Binnie's whole collection. It shows a section of the canyon close to Yoshida's 1925 print.

Here are some words on the print by Paul Binnie:

I have been working for over two years on an exceptional new print, the first design in my new series ‘Meishou to no Tabi’, or Travels with the Master. It is a very large design called “Cloud Shadows, Grand Canyon”, printed on fine hand-made washi paper, and created in an edition of only 100. Destined to become one of my best-known images, it will be my 100th Japanese print to date, and the story of its conception and creation is fascinating.

I decided to make the design the first in a series of prints paying homage to Yoshida Hiroshi, the early 20th Century Japanese printmaker, whose work I collect, since he made a well-known print of the Grand Canyon in 1925; the new piece was conceived as a sort of dialogue with the past, in which I as a contemporary printmaker could add my voice to that of one of the greatest print artists of 80 years ago. I wanted to make the link with the master who inspired the new piece in the title of the series, and thus pay my respects to an artist who has so influenced my landscape work.

In all, 32 colours are employed in the print, including mica and special techniques such as ‘gomazuri’, grainy printing, and ‘baren sujizuri’, where lines or swirls made by pressing with the edge of the baren are used for aesthetic affect. It takes approximately three months or so to print such a large piece with so many colours.

This is the fourth 'Famous View of Japan' and represents a famous garden, well known for its cherry blossoms. Here it is presented as unusually dramatic.

The idea of 'floating' brings to mind the Floating World, or 'Ukiyo-e'.

This famous mountain temple in Yamagata is built on a precipice over the vallery below and with stone steps hewn from the solid rock.

The Toshogu Shrine in Ueno Park is a favourite cherry-viewing spot.

This series contains 3 designs.

Marchal's series ‘Be Chic’ - a pun on 'Bichiques' - follows the time-honoured fishing tradition of this rare breed of fish found in the mouth of only a few rivers in the East of Réunion Island, in the stretch between Sainte Rose and Sainte Marie. In this lush part of the world, vanilla, litchis, sugar cane and bichiques abound. Bichiques are known as the ‘caviar’ of the island, and are therefore much sought after. Fishermen use a traditional vovo net (Malagasy word for ‘trap’) made from coconut trees and raffia to capture the fish. Marchal is interested in Réunionnais’ daily rituals which are rooted in tradition, and values what they do to safeguard the island’s unique identity and natural environment.

Marchal's series ‘Be Chic’ - a pun on 'Bichiques' - follows the time-honoured fishing tradition of this rare breed of fish found in the mouth of only a few rivers in the East of Réunion Island, in the stretch between Sainte Rose and Sainte Marie. In this lush part of the world, vanilla, litchis, sugar cane and bichiques abound. Bichiques are known as the ‘caviar’ of the island, and are therefore much sought after. Marchal is interested in Réunionnais’ daily rituals which are rooted in tradition, and values what they do to safeguard the island’s unique identity and natural environment.

Marchal's series ‘Be Chic’ - a pun on 'Bichiques' - follows the time-honoured fishing tradition of this rare breed of fish found in the mouth of only a few rivers in the East of Réunion Island, in the stretch between Sainte Rose and Sainte Marie. In this lush part of the world, vanilla, litchis, sugar cane and bichiques abound. Bichiques are known as the ‘caviar’ of the island, and are therefore much sought after. Fishermen use a traditional vovo net (Malagasy word for ‘trap’) made from coconut trees and raffia to capture the fish. Marchal is interested in Réunionnais’ daily rituals which are rooted in tradition, and values what they do to safeguard the island’s unique identity and natural environment.

This is the latest print in the 'Travels with the Master' series. This series focuses on Binnie's interpretation of sites that inspired the great master printer, Yoshida Hiroshi (1876-1950).

The viewpoint chosen is slightly different to Yoshida's original print: the American Falls is in the middle ground and the Horseshoe Falls is behind it, looking towards Canada in the distance. Binnie has used gofun (powdered shell pigment) to whiten the foreground area of snow and ice, as well as overlaying layers of bokashi (shading) to suggest the misty water vapour rising from these great waterfalls.

'Niagara Falls' is printed on paper by Iwano Ichibei, a Living National Treasure in Japan.

Atalya Laufer studied fine art at Central Saint Martins, Princes Drawing School and in Berlin. She has showcased her work all over the world, including London (including 'Future Map', 2006) and Berlin (Clockwork Gallery, 2009). Her work has been published in numerous magazines ('20 x 20', 2009) and is housed in public collections. Her paintings on paper evoke abstract sketches and experimentations with that traditional genre of 'still life'.

'Inazuma' means Lightning, but is a literary term that brings ideas of fertilising the fields derived from ancient poetry. The large format of this print gives a dramatic feeling of the verticality of the bolt of lightning as it crackles between dark clouds and rain to earth.

Within the edition of 40, there are 14 different printings, including 3 printings of solid black overlaid to achieve a deep, opaque darkness in the heaviest clouds.